One of Don Quixote's acts of chivalry that stood out to me was when he tried to avenge his horse, Rocicante in the fifteenth chapter. As Rocicante was left to graze, he made the mistake of going to flirt with some mares that belonged to a nearby group of muleteers. As a result, the muleteers gave him a thrashing which caught Don Quixote's attention and impulse to come to his aid, even though their little group was severely outnumbered. But that didn't stop him: "'I am the equal of a hundred men,' retorted Don Quixote.
And without further thought he seized his sword and attacked the men from Yanguas, and so did Sancho Panza, encouraged by his master's example." (Pg.116)
In spite of their courageous, and somewhat stupid endeavor, further down the paragraph reveals that they failed and received a beating of their own. But their failure isn't the point--it is Don Quixote's care and sweetness towards his horse that stands out in a time when most animals would not have been given as much respect as that.
Another noteworthy scene takes place in the next chapter in the second inn that they stay at. As usual, Don Quixote goes off in another equally eloquent and windblown speech to thank the inn keeper's family for taking him in. But for once, his sentiments are taken seriously without the usual humoring that goes with it: "...and since they weren't used to such language they stared at him in amazement, and thought that he wasn't at all like normal men; and then thanking him for his offers in the most expressive innkeeperese, they left him..." (XVI, pg. 124)
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